


Puh-Puh-Puh-leeze Mr. Solo

by pieces_of_jade



Category: Inside Llewyn Davis (2013), Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Age Difference, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - 1960s, But a crossover!lite in which literally nothing about Inside Llewyn Davis is mentioned other than, But like the loosest and most historically inaccurate period piece ever written, Crossover, F/M, M/M, Please Mr. Kennedy, Technically a period piece
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-01
Updated: 2020-06-13
Packaged: 2021-03-02 17:35:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,088
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24480634
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pieces_of_jade/pseuds/pieces_of_jade
Summary: “Poe this is dumb.”“Come on Ben!”“Nope.  No thanks.  I can’t even sing or play a guitar so why the fuck would you want me to be in a band with you?”“Um, ok.  First of all you CAN sing! I’ve heard you in the shower--”“The fuck?! You listen to me in the--”“And second of all I don’t need you to play an instrument! I’ve already got that figured out.  I just need a backup singer, a mind for business acumen, and a buddy! That’s YOU man! Plus -- come on! Sex, Drugs, Rock ‘n’ Roll! Don’t you wanna get laid?”“...this idea is still shit and so are you.”--AKA: Poe's bandmate drops out right before they're supposed to record his breakthrough single and he asks his best friend Ben Solo to fill in on back-up vocals.
Relationships: Finn & Rey (Star Wars), Kylo Ren/Rey, Poe Dameron & Ben Solo | Kylo Ren, Poe Dameron & Finn, Poe Dameron/Finn, Rey & Ben Solo | Kylo Ren, Rey/Ben Solo, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 4
Kudos: 29





	1. I'm six-foot two, and so perhaps you'll tell me how to fit into a five foot capsule

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by that "Please Mr. Kennedy" recording scene.
> 
> None of the Star Wars characters are mine, the dialogue, lyrics, and costumes ripped off from Inside Llewyn Davis are not mine, and Adam Driver certainly isn’t mine.
> 
> Probably a two part one-shot because I’m just that bitch.

“Poe this is dumb.”

“Come on Ben!”

“Nope. No thanks. I can’t even sing or play a guitar so why the fuck would you want me to be in a band with you?”

“Um, ok. First of all you CAN sing! I’ve heard you in the shower--”

“The fuck?! You listen to me in the--”

“And second of all I don’t need you to play an instrument! I’ve already got that figured out. I just need a backup singer, a mind for business acumen, and a buddy! That’s YOU man! Plus -- come on! Sex, Drugs, Rock ‘n’ Roll! Don’t you wanna get laid?”

“...this idea is still shit and so are you.”

Ben sighed, resigned to his fate. Poe Dameron had been his best friend since childhood, for better or worse, and he was rather used to getting dragged into his crazy hare-brained schemes with an alarming frequency considering how polar opposite they were.

Poe was an extroverted, multi-talented, classically handsome man. He was a bit of a dreamer and practically exuded confidence, charisma, and charm. He had never gone to college, instead deciding to pursue a career in music after high school. And now his ten years of hard work playing in dive bars and local festivals were finally paying off. He had somehow managed to snag a manager a year or so ago, a handsome British man named Finn Storm, who slowly but steadily helped Poe become “the next big thing” in the folk music scene.

Poe was supposed to record his break-through single tomorrow, but at 8am today his back-up vocalist and guitarist (and guy dragging the whole band down both because he was a shit musician and an even shittier person, in Ben’s opinion) Hux had bailed on the whole operation. He claimed that he had just signed an even better contract with First Order Records and swanned off without so much as a goodbye.

Now Poe was fucked unless he found someone to take Hux’s place. Booking time in a studio was expensive and hard to come by -- their session had been reserved for months. So he turned to his best friend, unofficial business advisor, and surprisingly decent singer -- Ben Solo -- for help.

Ben knew all of this, which was why he begrudgingly agreed to show up tomorrow, but he still couldn’t help but feel like Poe’s half-baked plan was still going to go terribly wrong. For a start, Ben was a massive introvert who preferred to keep his business his own. Whether or not he (only occasionally, mind) sang in the shower was his own private affair -- not his nosy roommate’s. Secondly, he was quiet and awkward in every social situation Poe (and his mother) had dragged him to, and he always felt too big and weird-looking to ever fit in. Ben would rather willingly and happily go to every single family dinner his mother nagged him to attend than perform in front of another living soul. And finally, even though Ben had a good head for numbers and figures, he wasn’t a businessman. In fact he was, secretly, a bit of a dreamer like Poe. But instead of music, Ben’s passion laid in the stars. Literally. He had pursued degrees in astronomy, astrophysics, and aeronautical engineering during the past ten years and was widely considered to be a bright, up-and-coming scientist at NASA. So why Poe thought he’d be a suitable replacement for Hux was absolutely beyond him other than the fact that Poe really WAS desperate and hoped that he could rely on their two-decades worth of friendship to be persuasive enough. And damn him, but it (probably) was.

\----

As requested, Ben showed up at Starkiller Studios at precisely 8am. He would’ve done so even without the obnoxiously loud (and rude) wake-up call of Poe barging into his room at 6am, jumping on his bed, and flopping dramatically over Ben’s definitely-no-longer-unconscious-body-thanks-a-fucking-lot-Poe. He also would’ve arrived much less resentfully if Poe hadn’t decided that Ben telling him to fuck off after his moronic morning greeting warranted dousing him with the cup of water he had conveniently left on the bedside table.

But he was here now and the studio wasn’t actually that bad. A little smaller and more intimate than he had expected, and the rest of the band hadn’t arrived yet. Ben wasn’t sure what to wear to a recording session (and Poe had been absolutely no help whatsoever -- the dark brown stetson Poe tried to put on his head before leaving the flat quickly discarded), so he decided to wear a burgundy dress shirt, sleeves rolled up to his forearms, with a white undershirt, dark jeans, and comfortable work boots. Meanwhile, Poe looked more professional than he normally did with a nice dark grey button up and dark dress pants with faded pinstripes. They met Finn, (who was dressed similarly in dark jeans with a cream sweater over a black button-up), at the entrance, and were quickly ushered inside to start setting everything up before the other musicians arrived.

Poe immediately started positioning the mics and other equipment in the live room, while Ben followed Finn into the control room. Despite Poe’s rather easy-going manner in most things, he could get very particular about his musical set-up.

“Hey man, how’s it goin'?” Finn asked, shaking Ben’s hand.

He and Ben had met a few times before whenever Finn had come over to Poe’s apartment “to discuss new contracts”. This was a euphemism that Ben had quickly realized actually meant “to have obnoxiously loud sexcapades”. The following week after Poe and Finn had finally worked out their unresolved tension with one another, he had invested in a gallon of bleach and Poe had gifted him a set of heavy-duty earplugs.

“Alright,” Ben muttered in return, still slightly in denial that this whole thing was happening.

“Bit surprised to see you here,” Finn laughed, “Honestly, I didn’t think Poe would convince you. No matter how many favors he claims you owe him.”

“It’s fine. It’s just for this one recording session before Poe can find a proper replacement,” Ben shrugged.

Finn’s brow furrowed quizzically at that, but before he could say anything the rest of the musicians came into the studio including Justin, the other main member of Poe’s band. After that, things moved quickly and before Ben knew it he was sitting around a mic with Poe and Justin on the latter’s left while Poe was on his right.

Poe had gotten him a guitar to hold (so he wouldn’t feel left out, his former-best friend claimed with a smirk), but in reality, Ben knew he had been given the guitar so he would have something to do with his hands. He tended to fidget with pent-up energy when he was nervous, and that would potentially ruin the takes.

After a few warm-ups and making sure everyone was ready, Poe finally gave Ben a copy of the part he was expected to sing. And he couldn’t believe it.

It was a fucking song about Fucking. Outer. Space. Ben felt like the universe was hell-bent on tormenting his life with ironic misery. Or Poe. Probably just Poe, honestly. The universe didn't fucking care that much about anyone.

But more than that it was a song about a reluctant astronaut pleading with President Kennedy to not go into space. Who the fuck spends decades of their life enduring rigorous tests, exams, course work, applications -- the whole fucking lot of it -- in order to apply for a prestigious program -- and get in! -- only to reject it all out of fear of exploration and a questionably lascivious sounding wife? Not Ben, that’s the fuck who. If someone offered him a chance to get off this miserable rock he would’ve taken it in a heartbeat and never looked back. Plus, his part seemed to be just making weird noises and random interjections that distracted the listener from the actual melody. He also realized this was why Poe had been so cagey about telling Ben more about his role other than “you’ll do fine” and “I owe you one”. He took back every compliment he ever said about Poe’s talent as a musician (even if they were as lackluster as “congrats you’re not a total fuck up” when his sets were met with raucous applause).

He was trying to run through the “sh-oww-ut” and the “ah-ah-ah-ow-tah-er space” lines as discreetly as possible, but there was nothing for it. His part was meant to be a rather loud, distinctive part of the song. At least no one seemed to think his warm-up was odd, as Poe and Justin were having a debate about the rest of the lyrics.

“Yeah, but we wanna go to the -- let’s do another puh-puh-puh-lease into the verse,” Poe said, a bit exasperated.

“Really?” Justin asked dubiously, “But it gets all muddled up into the verse.”

“No no you just do the puh-puh-puhs into the ver -- if you just do two puh-puhs,” Poe tried to explain.

“Hey look, I’m happy for the gig but who wrote this?” Justin asked quietly, almost conspiratorially, as if he thought it was all a joke.

“I did,” Poe challenged, looking Justin in the eye.

Ben snorted. Of course Poe would be proud of this ridiculous song. But he quickly tried to cover it up with a cough when Poe glared at him.

“Alllrriigghhtt then fellas, if you’ve all learned your parts..shall we?” Poe asked, redirecting the group back on track with a bit of a haughty sniff.

Thankfully the rest of the recording process wasn’t as painful as Ben feared it would be. He knew he probably looked and sounded stupid, but he wasn’t there to impress anyone. He was there to help Poe record his song and move on and never speak of this day again. Even if he was secretly having more fun than he would ever admit to Poe (which he never would until humankind evolved into the Star Child and even after that). Once he loosened up, Ben could privately admit that he rather enjoyed it. And Poe’s vision for what he wanted the song to sound like was clear and his minor critiques for his fellow musician’s performances were fair.

And honestly it all would’ve been fine and Ben would’ve been able to give himself the proverbial pat on the back for not only helping his best friend, but also adding to his “good karma” balance in the universe if it hadn’t been for what happened after Finn confirmed from the control room that “they got it, thanks very much.” Or rather, WHO happened once he left the live room.


	2. Please Mr. Kennedy (Uh oh!) I don't wanna go

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Haha funny story ... so somehow this went from a 2-parter to a 3-parter? Probably...self-control has gone out the window and so had any semblance of planning an actual plot for this.
> 
> No beta because we die like women.

Rey Palpatine had been best friends with Finn Storm for as long as she could remember. Her parents had died when she was a little girl and her rather infamous grandfather, Sheev Palpatine, had been good for nothing other than a sizable inheritance of dirty money just before he died last year. She hadn’t known him growing up, she had been lost in the shuffle of the foster care system, bouncing around from place to place until she had finally landed with Unkar Plutt for the last eight years until she aged out. And grandad Sheev didn’t know of her existence until a few weeks just before he died. But that suited Rey just fine. She was used to relying on no one but herself -- even with Finn, a fellow orphan in her group home, as her best friend. In fact, the only thing Rey determined was a good thing about being a long lost Palpatine was that his money was able to fund her move to the States to start a new life across the pond with Finn.

That had been just over a year ago, and while Finn was making waves in the music scene, Rey was a sophomore at Columbia studying aerospace engineering. She loved every single thing about it, but especially her mentor, Professor Skywalker, who was something of a legend when it came to her field.

They roomed together in the village because, despite Rey’s newly discovered wealth, old habits die hard, which meant that she was still used to scrimping and saving -- scavenging for her next meal and shelter wherever she went. Plus, it’s not like the snooty upper west side neighborhoods would’ve been particularly welcoming to her and Finn.

It was for the best, though, as living in the village meant that Finn was able to be right in the heart of the action for every up-and-coming talent and musical trend. And really Columbia was only a quick hop on the uptown 1 train away.

Honestly the only annoying thing was that Finn’s time was split between his career, Rey, and his newest boyfriend, Poe. It wasn’t that Rey disliked Poe -- quite the opposite, actually, seeing as she had never met him. Her best friend had been dating the man for over a year and she STILL hadn’t met the “Better Half”, and she was quite put out with it all.

It wasn’t for lack of trying from Finn, to be fair. Poe’s rather free-spirited, spontaneous way about going through life, combined with a haphazard musical schedule, and her rather rigorous course load, meant that the fates had conspired to keep them apart for ages. But now, finally, FINALLY, after months of nagging Finn, he had told her to join him down at Starkiller Studios this Saturday (the first one she had off in ages) so she could finally meet Poe.

She wanted to make a good first impression, so Rey decided to dress up a little. She styled her hair in three cute buns at the back of her head, and added a nice cream blouse underneath her oversized military jacket. Her dark jeans and comfortable boots showed off her toned legs nicely and her light make-up made her look slightly more mature than her actual nineteen years.

The walk down to the studio took her less than twenty minutes, and by the time she entered the quaint little building, she assumed the musicians were packing up.

“Peanut!” Finn greeted her happily, pulling her in for a hug when she entered the control room, “Glad you could make it!”

Rey kissed his cheek and beamed at him, “Of course! Wouldn’t pass up a chance to finally meet the infamous Poe you’ve been telling me all about! You all through here? I don’t want to keep you if--”

She gestured through the window towards the live room where it looked like the musicians were still chatting and going over their notes.

“Oh yeah,” Finn assured her, “They’re just finishing up now.”

“Oh okay. Great!” Rey said enthusiastically.

“We can wait here for Poe to wrap up, since he’ll come this way anyways to go over stuff with me before we head out for lunch.”

Rey gave a rather distracted thumbs up as something flashed in the corner of her eye that made her turn away from Finn. She hadn’t paid much attention at first when she had vaguely pointed towards the band, but a blur of muted red had caught her eye in a room that was otherwise a rather desaturated palette of blues and greys.

Her eyes widened as she took in what, or more precisely who, stood out amongst the monotony. He was...big. That was the only way to describe him. His nose was rather prominent and his ears adorably peaked out underneath the tousled black locks that looked as if he had run his hand through his hair multiple times out of frustration. His hands were also large, making the guitar he cradled on his lap look almost small in comparison. And he had the most soulful whiskey brown eyes she had ever seen, shining like stars gleaming amongst the constellation of moles dotted across his pale skin.

She couldn’t stop staring at him as he set the guitar down and strode out the door, without so much as a backwards glance toward the others. She wondered where he was going, but wasn’t left pondering for long as a second later the door to the control room creaked open.

There he stood, his massive frame taking up most of the doorway, and -- oh shit, now his gaze was trained directly on her and the intensity she saw from a distance was merely heightened as his eyes locked with hers.

“Why are you here?” his deep voice rumbled, his expression stony.

“Excuse me?” Rey asked, a little bewildered. She thought his question was a bit rude. She didn’t know him, and sure she wasn’t a musician, but there was no need to try and point out she didn’t belong.

But before she could ask who he was, Finn, who had been fiddling around with the board, interrupted with a friendly, “Hey Ben!”

The tall giant, apparently named Ben, merely gave a grunt in return. He had averted his gaze from hers at the unexpected greeting, and his cheeks were slightly flushed.

“Rey, meet Ben. Ben, this is Rey, my best mate,” Finn said proudly, “Ben is Poe’s roommate.”

“Charmed,” Rey muttered, offering her hand to shake, which Ben grasped in his own.

She was surprised to feel how nice his warm, strong grip felt, as if he would never let her go, while his fingers delicately cradled her own as if she was something to be treasured.

Ben merely blinked, his eyes locked on their intertwined hands, but before the moment became too awkward he abruptly let go as a shorter, more traditionally handsome man with dark curly hair strode into the room.

“Hello honey,” the stranger beamed at Finn, greeting him with a peck on the lips, slinging his arm around his waist, before turning around to face her and Ben.

“Ah! This is where you ran off to,” he laughed at Ben, “Wondered where you were hiding or if you just decided to fuck off without saying anything.”

His eyes drifted over to where Rey was standing in, and immediately smirked, “Oh I see. You sly bastard--”

“Rey this is my boyfriend, Poe Dameron,” Finn interrupted hastily, clearly cutting off the beginning of a rather suggestive comment, “Poe this is my best mate Rey Palpatine.”

“Palpatine?” Ben said sharply, immediately redirecting his intense focus back on her.

“Yeah, what’s it to you?” Rey asked.

“Any relation to Sheev Palpatine?” Ben prompted, ignoring her question.

“He was my late grandad if you must know. But I never met the man and all he left me with was a last name and some money to get Finn and me to the States.”

Ben had an odd look on his face before Poe interrupted the weird interrogation, “So Rey, it’s a pleasure to meet you at long last! Especially after hearing all about you from this guy. Can’t believe you’re studying aerospace engineering at Columbia-- impressive!”

Poe smiled warmly when he said it, but he had a mischievous glint in his eye when he said it as he quickly glanced in Ben’s direction.

Rey decided to ignore the strange exchange for the time being, happy to take up the offered distraction and to get to know Poe better, “Oh thanks! I mean, it’s not nearly as impressive as being a professional musician and all like yourself, but I really love it.”

“Rey’s just being modest,” Finn interjected, “She’s already fast-tracked to get a job with any engineering firm she wants after graduating and is the youngest in her class.”

“Finn,” Rey blushed, “It’s not all that you’re making it out to be. I really wouldn’t even have all the opportunities I have without the guidance and connections from my professor.”

“What’s their name?” Ben asked suddenly.

“Skywalker,” Rey said proudly, “Luke Skywalker. He’s an absolute genius in the field-- He pioneered the tech that’s going to take us to the moon, and I’ve been helping him get the data in order for the experiments he’s planning on sending with the astronauts. Not to mention all the mentoring he’s given me the past year I’ve been studying under his tutelage. Honestly I would be nothing without Professor Skywalk--”

“Skywalker is fool,” Ben angrily interrupted her, “And so are you if you think that he’s anything other than a washed up hasbeen and a subpar scientist.”

“How dare you! Who the fuck--why the fuck--WHAT the fuck do you know you about aerospace enginnering?!” Rey exclaimed indignantly, “You’re just a folk singer, and not a very good one, mind, who knows fuck all about outer space other than how to repeat the words ad nauseum in a SUBPAR song!”

The tips of Ben’s ears that she could see peeking through his annoyingly soft-looking hair were turning a rather alarming shade of scarlet as she continued her accusations.

“Excuse YOU,” he snarled, cheeks now as flush as his ears, “I may not have the best voice, but at least I have a legitimate reason to be here in this studio. I don’t assume that just because I’m friends with a producer I have the right to crash recording sessions -- which is totally unprofessional, by the way-- and if you must know, I am only here as a favor to Poe. I also think the song is rather stupid. And my full name is Dr. Benjamin Organa Solo.”

Rey’s face paled at that pronunciation. Shit. Dr. Benjamin O. Solo was a legend at NASA, which was secretly her first choice of employment after graduation. The youngest ever to be hired on, rumored to be a selected as one of the very first American astronauts to go to space, and deeply connected to not only most of the scientific community (despite having a famous but mysterious falling out with his uncle, Professor Skywalker), but also all of the Who’s Who for the most influential members in American society today thanks to his socialite, practically-descended-from-American-royalty mother and his former-criminal-still-a-scoundrel father (whose independent fortune was rumored to have built as a rum-runner back in the days of prohibition).

And yet despite her clear social faux pas, the thing she was (secretly) most annoyed about more than any of that was how she didn’t know how good-looking he was. After all, he had never offered the press any photographs attached to all of his ground-breaking articles over the years that she not-so-secretly admired and collected. But no matter how handsome, intelligent, and well-connected he was, he was still an asshole. And Rey didn’t tolerate rude jerks like him.

“Sorry, Dr. Solo,” she said through gritted teeth, “But I didn’t realize that your past-times included singing. I thought your only hobby was basing your entire career on getting back at your uncle.”

Rey inwardly groaned. No need to hit so far below the belt, but that was her. Foot and mouth were old, and frequent, acquaintances-- no need to meet for the first time.

Indeed, at that jab she saw Ben’s eyes harden, but not before she saw a flash of hurt before the impassive wall went up.

“No need to apologize, Ms. Palpatine,” he said stiffly, his condescending tone matching his flinty stare, “Especially if all of your apologies are as _subpar_ as that one.”

Rey winced inwardly. Okay, she may have deserved that jab. She glanced over at Finn, silently pleading for him to help her find a way out of this mess, but he and Poe were both badly concealing a clear desire to laugh at the scene in front of them. She glared, and Finn coughed awkwardly to hide his snickering.

“Right. Well then Ben,” Poe gallantly interrupted, “Finn, Rey, and I were about to go out to lunch.”

He glanced at his watch and Rey silently thanked him for providing the perfect excuse to leave his massive giant (and giant mess of an interaction) behind.

“Erm, yes,” she said quickly, “Exactly. Best be off. Can’t be late for our res--”

“You’re welcome to join us.”

Fuck. She took back her gratitude for Poe coming to her rescue.

Ben merely blinked, the lines of his shoulders no longer tense. He squinted sideways at Poe, and the two exchanged an unsaid look with one another.

“I don’t know--”

“Oh come on!” Finn laughed, “It’ll be fun-- just the four of us getting to know each other better.”

And that was how Rey Palpatine found herself going from a pleasant excursion with her best mate and his beau to lunch with two traitors and a distressingly attractive enemy.


End file.
